Poor Lung Health Linked to Dementia

Individuals who have midlife lung disease and reduced lung function have a modestly higher risk for developing dementia and mild cognitive impairment later in life, according to a new study.

To determine the relationship between lung health and cognitive ability, the researchers analyzed data on 14,184 participants from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. 

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During 1987 to 1989, the participants underwent spirometry and were asked about their lung health. Then, during 1987 to 2013, participants’ development of dementia and mild cognitive impairment was tracked, defined by hospitalization diagnosis codes. During 2011 to 2013, 42% of the participants attended a comprehensive neurocognitive examination.

In their evaluation of the adjudicated outcomes, the researchers determined that participants who had restrictive and obstructive lung disease were more likely to develop dementia or mild cognitive impairment than participants without lung disease or respiratory symptoms, though the association was more apparent for restrictive impairment than for obstructive lung disease.

In analyses restricted to nonsmokers, the researchers determined the associations to be similar and present for both Alzheimer disease–related dementia and cerebrovascular etiologies.

“These associations were present in smokers and nonsmokers,” the researchers concluded. “If the observed associations are causal, policy and public health efforts to reduce smoking and improve air quality may have the added benefit of preventing the development of dementia and mild cognitive impairment.”

—Colleen Murphy

Reference:

Lutsey PL, Chen N, Mirabelli MC, et al. Impaired lung function, lung disease, and risk of incident dementia. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2019;199(11):1385-1396. https://doi.org/10.1164/rccm.201807-1220OC.